Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI)

Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice

As recipients of funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the members of the Contra Costa HOME Consortium (Consortium), which includes Contra Costa County and the cities of Antioch, Concord, Pittsburg, and Walnut Creek, are required to conduct an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI) and to periodically review that analysis and update it as necessary. Further, each AI is reassessed and reevaluated with each Consolidated Plan. Together, the members of the Consortium have collaborated to jointly plan for the housing and community development needs of the County. The City of Richmond also partnered with the Consortium in the development of this AI.

The purpose of an AI is to review conditions in the jurisdictions that may impact the ability of households to freely choose housing and to be treated without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, national origin, source of income, age, disability, or other protected status. The AI reviews the general state of fair housing, the enforcement of fair housing law, efforts to promote fair housing, access to credit for the purpose of housing, and general constraints to the availability of a full range of housing types. An AI also examines the affordability of housing in the jurisdiction with an emphasis on housing affordable to households with annual incomes classified as low income and less. (Low income is defined as equal to or less than 80 percent of the adjusted Area Median Income as most recently published by HUD.)

Public Participation Process

To gain pertinent information on fair housing needs and activities in Contra Costa County, the County collected and analyzed demographic and housing data; conducted and analyzed Fair Housing Surveys completed by community residents, jurisdictions, and stakeholder organizations across the County and interviewed key stakeholders including advocacy organizations and government officials; and conducted a literature review.